Hoyer Statement on Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Power Plan

WASHINGTON, DC - House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today after the Environmental Protection Agency announced their Clean Power Plan to reduce power plant carbon emissions:

“Today’s announcement by EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy of new proposed regulations to curb carbon emissions at our nation’s power plants is a bold step at a time when the world is looking to the United States to take the lead against the dangerous effects of climate change. With rising temperatures and more erratic weather patterns, climate change is being measured not only in meteorologists’ hard data but in the daily lives of average Americans, who are experiencing higher rates of asthma, rising food and energy costs, extreme weather events, and economic uncertainty caused by the potential for global conflicts over dwindling natural resources. Climate change is real, and we must come together as a nation to meet this important challenge, not ignore it.

“The EPA’s plan to reduce power plant carbon emissions, while providing states the flexibility to select the most cost-effective measures, will encourage cleaner, more efficient energy generation over the coming years, not only yielding benefits to public health but also spurring innovation and new private sector investment in the manufacturing and use of new energy technologies. This plan is expected to prevent up to 6,600 premature deaths and 150,000 asthma attacks in children by 2030 and in the same period reduce families’ electricity bills by approximately 8%.

“With the Republican-led Congress’s lack of interest in addressing climate change, the EPA is moving forward with a common-sense plan that will reduce pollution, slow climate change, improve public health, and create jobs. I hope Democrats and Republicans will see today’s announcement as a starting point from which we can work together to come up with additional ways to support the Administration and make our nation more energy efficient and to reduce carbon emissions more significantly as we move forward.”